It's the Tiny Things - Do You Look for the Signs?
A song sent from the other side ✨🌙
It was April 20, 2020. Just five weeks earlier, COVID had shut down the world.
I was walking over the bridge to my neighborhood park – a morning ritual I had fallen into – when my phone rang. It was my brother’s girlfriend. We never spoke on the phone, so I knew immediately something was wrong.
My brother Todd passed away that morning.
While I had always expected he might leave this world before I did, it still felt sudden. He was only 52.
He started experimenting with drugs when he was 14. By 16, he was in his first rehab center. Back then, he would call the house right when I got home from school. He knew I was the only one there to answer. “I just wanted to hear the sound of your voice, brat.” He liked to tease me. But he was always sure to tell me he loved me before he hung up.
Todd was always into heavy metal, and I leaned more towards alternative. But somehow, Pink Floyd crossed that boundary. It was one of the few things we could agree on when it came to music.
The week he died, during lockdown, Miley Cyrus streamed a set from her backyard, sitting by a bonfire. She sang this song.
The moment the song began, I felt something shift. I got overwhelmed in a way I couldn’t quite explain. It felt like Todd had sent it to me.
I know that might sound strange. But he had only been gone for seven days. And out of all the songs she could have chosen – it was this one.
This morning, I woke up and didn’t think about any of it. Not right away. I made my coffee, sat down at my desk, and started going through emails. Then I opened Instagram – and the very first thing in my feed was this:
A member of Pink Floyd shows up in a bar to sing I Wish You Were Here with his daughter.
It’s been so long since I’ve listened to it.
For it to find me like that, first thing in the morning on April 20th, felt a bit meant for me. Like a paper airplane cast from somewhere I can’t quite see, landing at my feet.
You might call it a coincidence. I guess it depends on who you are – what you believe is possible, what needs proof.
But as I see it, we live on a planet orbiting a sun, where tiny creatures like bees make our existence possible. That alone feels either incredibly absurd or incredibly magical.
I tend to leave room for the magic.
Until Next Time 🌙 ✨
Kim
P.S. Please leave your Tiny Things below and spread delight to all of us who love to read them.
P.S.S. Have you ever received a “sign” from someone you have lost?
This is lovely. I'm sorry about the loss of your brother, but I'm so glad those signs were there to comfort you. I love these moments of synchronicity.
The tiny moment I'd like to share was from the LA Times Festival of Books. My daughter-in-law and I go every year, and this year we decided that we were going to simply walk around without much of an agenda. As we were walking, I spied author Susan Orlean (The Library Book, The Orchid Thief, On Animals) signing her new memoir, Joyride. I recommend The Library Book often, to everyone who loves the library, especially if you live in Los Angeles. And Joyride is on my TBR list. So it was a thrill to meet her and buy a signed book at the spur of the moment!
Thank you so much for sharing your story and the memory of your brother - and the tiny moments 💕
I lost my favorite aunt when I was 12. I am 47 now, and whenever I have a difficult time, or stress, or even when I succeed in something, she comes in my dream. She always smiles at me and she raises her shoulder a bit like she used to. Last year, when my dad was in the ICU, she came to me on the three nights dad was in there and she smiled at me. On day four, dad came out of the ICU and called me what he used to call me when I was little: “love ya you little sh#%“ 💕🥹